On January 21st, the Sacramento branch of the Black Lives Matter organization is hosting the “4th Annual Reclaim MLK: This Was Not The Dream!” march. The event is meant to make others aware that there was a Martin Luther King Jr. that people are not taught about.

Black Lives Matter Sacramento wants to march for a specific vision that Martin Luther King Jr. had. “The MLK Jr that no one speaks of. The MLK Jr that doesn’t accommodate the legitimacy of white supremacy, but instead the MLK Jr that tells us that “A Riot is the Language of the Unheard,” that “I’m Black and I’m Beautiful”.”

On April 4th, 1967, Martin Luther King Jr. gave a speech that surprised many. King’s speech, titled-Beyond Vietnam, detailed how the United States was using its resources on the war and not protecting those within its own country and how the main enemy for most citizens was their own country.

“…I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos,” King declared in Beyond Vietnam, “Without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world: my own government.”

Black Lives Matter Sacramento continues to put on this event as a reminder of the Martin Luther King, Jr. that, according to USA Today, “has all but disappeared from the public consciousness.” In the aftermath of the speech, critical people were fired up and judgmental. Many thought that

King should have “left well-enough alone” and kept the two topics separate. In fact, many would rather have had King disappear and the anger led up to King’s death via assassination on April 4th, 1968.

The 4th Annual Reclaim MLK: This Was Not The Dream! March is meant to commemorate King’s life and work that many do not care to know about and to continue King’s fight.

Martin Luther King Jr. was renowned for his achievements as a political activist in civil rights. But many people don’t know that just before he was assassinated, he strived to solve the problem of poverty in our nation. King wanted the government to eliminate poverty by providing every US citizen a guaranteed middle-class income and a job. He didn’t want to just alleviate poverty but to also raise the American society into the middle-class. King argued that the guaranteed income should be “pegged to the median of society” and it would, therefore, raise the standard of living for many people. He contended that his plan was feasible because he noted an estimate by John Kenneth Galbraith, an economist, that the government could create a guaranteed income with $20 billion dollars a year. As Mr. Galbraith said, King’s economic plan was “not much more than we will spend the next fiscal year to rescue freedom and democracy and religious liberty as these are defined by ‘experts’ in Vietnam.”

With that in mind, the third annual “Reclaim MLK: This Was Not The Dream!” march will be held on January 15th, 2018 between 9:30 AM – 12:30 PM, starting at the Safeway market at 1025 Alhambra Boulevard in Sacramento. This march is hosted by Black Lives Matter Sacramento, SURJ Sacramento, and the Gender Health Center. The goal of this MLK march is to bring unity and to rally the power of the people against racism, white supremacy, capitalism, patriarchy, heteronormativity, homelessness, poverty, and fascism. The march will end at the Sacramento Convention Center, 1400 J Street, where the Diversity Expo will be held from 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM.

Black Lives Matter Sacramento, SURJ Sacramento, and the Gender Health Center collectively made a statement, “We will not be aligned with an event tainted in capitalism or sponsored by the very law enforcement entities that are killing us in the street, but with the people! Join us!”

Monday January 19th marked another year for the annual Southside MLK (Martin Luther King Jr.) march. The march began at Sacramento City College and ended at the Sacramento Convention Center in downtown Sacramento. There were several different festivities at the convention center all relating to Martin Luther King Jr. The different booths and activities educated people on the history of who MLK was, what he did for America, and why he was so important.

One 21 year old participant was more than eager to share her thoughts about the entire event. Diauni Robinson, a Youth Peer Mentor at Stanford Youth Solutions, is also a full time student at Sacramento State University College.

Me: “How long have you been a resident of Sacramento California? What part of Sacramento?”

Robinson: “I’ve been a resident of Sacramento for the majority of my life, since I was 2. I grew up all over this city, South Sacramento, North Highlands, and Roseville being the main areas.”

Me: “As a resident of this area, how important is it to you that people participate in the MLK March?”

Robinson: “It’s important that people participate in the MLK March. There’s so much I want to say here. Our Blackness is love. You know, in elementary school, the very first thing we learn about ourselves is that we were slaves, inhuman, and in pain, as is if we had/were nothing before our arrival to America. We, as Black people, have been stripped of so many sacred facets of who we are: our history, land, philosophy, spirituality, our identities are no longer our own. They are an assimilation of White America. We are slowly but surely coming back to the Kings and Queens we were and are. A simple march like this one brings so much value to self and unity amongst people of all colors, but especially the Black community. Awareness, active participation, and holding reverence for our ancestors who paved the way for us to be here today; it matters.”

Me: “Does this march mean anything to you personally?”

Robinson: “Yes, this march meant a lot to me. I’ve always had a strenuous passion for Black rights. It brought me to a place where I finally felt whole, if only for a couple hours. It felt as though I was bringing honor to those women and men who walked before us, and letting the world know, that we have so much more work to do.”

Me: “What specifically has MLK done for you personally?”

Robinson: “Well one of many things Dr. King has allowed me to do, is be an active citizen in the political realm, by being able to vote at my own will, without all of the loopholes in place made especially for minority groups. I get to have a voice in who creates my rules. That’s extremely significant.”

Me: “Do you think that MLK has accomplished his “dream”? If not, how do you think we as a society today can help change that?”

Robinson: “No, I believe that time is cyclical, not linear. Many of the injustices Dr. King spoke about are parallel to what we face today. From Mike Brown to Tamir Rice, our people still remain at the forefront of a war that cannot be won unless the oppressor is identified, unless we can have open conversations about race in America. Let’s start there.”

Me: “Do you believe the march was a success this year? If not, how can the word about it be better spread?”

Robinson: “I do! There were hundreds of people. It was absolutely incredible, and to have the support of the local government and police department made it that much more beautiful.”

Me: “What were some of your thoughts and feelings during the march?”

Robinson: “To be honest, I had so many mixed emotions. I was proud, afraid, invigorated, angry, hopeful, inspired, and… full.”

Me: “Will you be marching next year?”

Robinson: “Definitely.”

Me: “What was your favorite part or the march? Or least favorite?”

Robinson: “My favorite part of the march was the very beginning. People were excited, the energy was amazing. Music was blaring, people were smiling, Dr. King’s speech was being played over loudspeakers. My heart was overflowing with warmth. As the march continued, though, I felt moods shift and speech grow frustrated. Reality may have kicked in after the first few miles, but that’s okay. Silence is consent. Expression is necessary.”

Me: “Anything else you would like to add?”

Robinson: “I would just like to say, that we love you King, and X, and Davis. We will never forget the impact that you had on this world and on our lives. Your sacrifices are our blessings.”

The 2015 MLK march had a large turnout this year. With tensions between people of color and law enforcement, MLK Day was especially important and reminded participants what our greater mission as one society should be.

Well what do you say about a Martin Luther King, Jr. parade? You read about it in the newspaper or watch it on the evening news; but its nothing like being here on location and watching the people, and especially the young people. Then you realize what it means to them. I’m emotionally connected to what I see at this Martin Luther King parade in Sacramento, California, this morning of January Seventeenth, two thousand eleven.

As you drive upon the marching route on Martin Luther King Boulevard, you start noticing all the balloons that are being put in place on strings, on poles and trees by the young people, and the colors of the balloons are red, white and blue; and block after block there are more and more young people; and more and more red, white and blue balloons are being hung from every conceivable place and it doesn’t really strike you as to what is going on inside you emotionally. Suddenly, I can remember the marches in the South, in Detroit up Woodward Avenue, in Chicago and D.C. back in the sixties; I can remember hearing Stevie Wonder and all the concerts where he sung that song, “Happy Birthday”. I can remember hearing him sing this very song at a concert in the Cow Palace in So. San Francisco and can see the faces of the people as they filed out of the arena to their cars in the parking lots and some as they walked down the hill, still singing the words to the song.

The song was written in 1981 by Stevie Wonder in the campaign to have MLK’s birthday become a national holiday. Stevie was one just one of the many artist and people from all over America and all over the world who promoted such a holiday.

Now here in 2011, it amazes me to be out here marching in Sacramento among all these people. The full emotional impact of it all hits you, and I find myself remembering why this day means so much. So, the next time there is an event about something you feel passionate about, my suggestion is get out there and participate, it could change you. It changed me.